


i don't need anything (to get me through the night)

by montecarlos



Series: Howl [1]
Category: GP2 RPF
Genre: Angst, Blood, Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Gen, M/M, Minor Injuries, Origin Story, Werewolves, shifting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-14
Updated: 2016-08-14
Packaged: 2018-08-08 19:07:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7769599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/montecarlos/pseuds/montecarlos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of how Sean Gelael found his way into the pack and into a certain beta's affections.</p>
            </blockquote>





	i don't need anything (to get me through the night)

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, this is gonna be a long ass note to match my long ass story, sue me. First off, this story would not have been possible without the constant support of Jamie, Amy and Emma. I love you, my wives. Without them, this story would be rotting on my documents somewhere, thank you for listening to me rattle on and on about gay wolves. Also special thanks to Nino, Chesca and Lewis, all of whom pushed me to my limit and made me produce something I'm immensely proud of. 
> 
> Okay, so a little backstory. Sean is not part of the pack yet. This is more of an origin story, since I am a hoe for a good origin story. Alex has the formations of his pack - Pierre is his co-alpha and Stoffel and Tonio are his betas. Warnings in this fic for blood (oh, lots of it!), a bullet extraction (I watched videos dammit) and of child abuse/domestic violence. 
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Sean’s locking up the cages of the animals at the clinic when he hears the frantic tapping on the glass window. He knows that he shouldn’t open the door, that Fernando told him not to take in any animals when he was on his own, that he should send them away and they could return in the morning. However, he catches the worried, dark brown eyes of Alex Lynn, the star of the football team. He knows Alex from school, they used to be best friends before they drifted apart, before Alex seem to change somehow overnight, became a different person. He thinks about turning the teenager away before he looks down and spots the bundle of bloodied blankets in his muscular arms and finds himself unlocking the door.    
  
“I need help,” Alex says, worrying his lip as he pulls the bloodied bundle closer to his chest in an almost protective manner. “He’s in trouble and I-”   
  
“Calm down,” Sean says, mustering up the calmest tone he can as he motions for the teenager to place the bundle of blankets down on the metal table before them. “Listen, I can’t help you if you don’t let me examine him,” He says softly, trying to keep his voice calm.    
  
Alex hesitates for a moment, biting his lip before he slowly lowers the blankets to the steel table, his hands slowly withdrawing from the bundle. Sean pulls on a pair of latex gloves and slowly pulls back the blankets. His eyes widen as he takes in the chocolate brown fur, damp and darkened with thick, heavy blood, the animal - he’s not sure if it’s a wolf, dog or a hybrid of both - pants lightly as his hands slowly begin to probe the fur.    
  
“What happened?” He asks Alex as he carefully examines the animal, wincing as he finds the troublesome wound, oozing thick blood over the metal of the table.    
  
“He got run over, he ran into the road and I couldn’t stop him-” Alex says, his face pale, his eyes watching Sean’s carefully move over the creature to check for any breaks to his legs.   
  
“Here,” He says, pushing a towel at the teenager. “We need to stop the bleeding and you need to tell me the truth, Alex,”   
  
“I-” Alex begins, his face still stark white as he presses down on the oozing wound, a small whine of pain presses from the animal. “He-”   
  
“I’m not here to get you in trouble,” Sean says, his hands slowly checking over the animal’s body, checking for other wounds that might be hidden amongst the fur. He notes that the dog-wolf is skinny, smaller than it should be, his hands smoothing over hardened ribs. “I just need to know what happened,”   
  
“He was shot,” Alex says. “Not by me,” He adds immediately, still pressing the towel to the wolves side. “He’s my - my pet, he got out and it was a big mistake”   
  
“You have a wolf for a pet?” Sean asks with a raised eyebrow.    
  
Alex worries his lip. “He’s a dog-”   
  
“Nice try, but he’s too big to be a dog and his snout is different, if he’s not full wolf, he’s at least a hybrid,” Sean says, locking eyes with the teenager. “You can take the towel away now, I need to inspect the damage,”   
  
“We were in the woods, I was letting him run around like he usually does and he disappeared into the bushes. I heard this gunshot and then Tonio came out of the bushes all bloodied and collapsed on the floor-”   
  
“Tonio? You named the wolf?” Sean says, his tone is one of disbelief.    
  
“Yeah, I named the wolf,” Alex says, hating how defensive he sounds. “Sorry, I just, I want him to be okay- I just, I didn’t know where to go-”   
  
“Alex, it’s okay,” Sean says, worrying his lip, grabbing a penlight from the side. The light confirms his fears, the bullet is still wedged into the wolf, the faint gleam of gold reflecting from under the chocolate brown fur. “I wasn’t going to turn you away, no matter what happened between us,”   
  
“I’m sorry,” Alex says quietly. “I’m sorry we drifted apart, I just...I had a lot going on my life at that time,”   
  
“You don’t need to apologise,” Sean says as he places the penlight down and moves over to where Fernando keeps his tools, trying to hide how much his hands are shaking. 

He knows he shouldn’t be doing this, knows that he should call Fernando but there’s something in Alex’s eyes that stops him as he pulls on a fresh pair of gloves. “I should warn you that I’ve never performed an operation on an animal before,” He says quietly. “I’ve done it before with Fernando but...I need to know, do you trust me?”   
  
“I always have,” Alex says, his brown eyes locked on Sean. “What are you doing?” He asks, stance stiffening as he watches Sean carefully inject some anesthetic into the area surrounding the wound, the wolf - Tonio - whines under his breath, arching his long back before he settles back against the table.   
  
“Well, clearly you don’t because you never told me what happened with you,” Sean says, placing the needle on the tray next to him, checking over the wolf, checking that the anesthetic is taking hold.    
  
“Sean, I-”   
  
“You just changed, you just stopped talking to me and I never knew what I did wrong,” Sean says, his eyes still fixed on the brown fur as he probes the wolves’s stomach carefully. “You disappeared over summer and you came back looking like you could lift this table easily, which is ironic since you used to hate exercise,” He says, a faint smile on his face as he thinks back a year ago when Alex was small and skinny, there was barely any muscle on him, barely any fat. Sean remembers counting his ribs once when he pulled off his shirt just before football practise, remembers how Alex used to get pushed around on the pitch. He’d changed over that summer; bulked up, cold, unfeeling. He wasn’t the same person anymore.    
  
Alex’s shoulders sink at Sean’s words. “I, I’m still the same person I was before, Sean,”   
  
Sean takes in the sight of Alex’s muscles, visible through his tight t-shirt and bites back a laugh. “You’re not though, you’re this whole other person now, got all the girls after you and everything,” He pauses for a moment. “I need you to get a pair of gloves on and hold the edges of the wound open so I can get in and have a look-”   
  
“This won’t hurt him, will it?” Alex says, worrying his lip as he pulls a pair of gloves and tentatively moves closer to Sean. Sean watches his muscles ripple as his fingers slowly close around the edges of the wound, holding it open, his brown eyes flashing over to Tonio’s closed ones. Sean forceps the other side of the skin down the best he can.    
  
“No, he’s well and truly under,” Sean says, gripping the tweezers tightly in his shaking hands. “You’re going to need to wipe away the blood as I work,” He says quietly. Alex nods, his other hand snatching up the wipes on Sean’s table. Sean bites down on his lip, Alex’s brown eyes locked on him as the tweezers curl around the bottom of the bullet.   
  
“I’m sorry,” Alex whispers, breaking through the silence as he swipes the fresh blood away. “I’m sorry that I brought him to you, I didn’t know where else to go with him,”   
  
Sean makes a noise of agreement as he pulls hard on the bullet, feels it shift against the wolves skin, feels it pull slightly away from the wound, fresh blood gushing down over his glove. “I didn’t leave you,” Alex continues. “I just-”   
  
“Left,” Sean says, shaking his head as he clamps down on the bullet once more. “It’s okay to admit that you know?”   
  
“I didn’t want to,” Alex says, eyes glancing up at Sean before he realises that the blood is still dripping down onto the table and swipes it away. “I never wanted this to happen but I-”   
  
“Forget it,” Sean says, pulling harder, feeling the bullet dislodge again. “It’s done now, you’ve moved on and-”   
  
“I never moved on,” Alex says, worrying his lip. “I missed you, Sean. I just-”   
  
“You had problems,” Sean mutters, finally beginning to pull the bullet out. “You could have talked to me, could have tried to tell me what was going on,”   
  
“I wanted to, but-” Alex begins, only to pause as Sean finally pulls the bullet out, the gold casing shining under the harsh sterile lights.    
  
“Keep the pressure on the wound,” Sean instructs Alex as he drops the bloodied bullet and the forceps onto the metal table, the hard clang interrupting the silence. Alex is about to continue speaking when he notices that Tonio is shaking against the metal, his expression twisted with pain as his back arches back and forth.    
  
Sean’s brow furrows. “He’s supposed to be anaesthetised, he shouldn’t be moving,”   
  
“What do you mean?”   
  
“I gave him a big dose, he should still be out for the count,” Sean says as he picks up the needle and checks the dosage. “I don’t think I can give him anymore, but he needs stitches,”   
  
Alex worries his lip as he glances down at Tonio, still twitching against the table, still pressing the cloth against the wound. “Stitches?”   
  
“I need to close the wound to prevent infection,” Sean says. “And I daren’t give him anymore, he’s had a big enough dose,”   
  
“So what do we do?” Alex says, Tonio still arching against the pain, the blood still sluggishly pouring from his wound, Alex pressing harder on it with the cloth, stained dark red.    
  
“Hold him down,” Sean instructs as he grabs a suture kit from one of the drawers. “I need you to keep him as still as possible,”   
  
“What-” Alex begins, grabbing hold of Tonio’s legs. Sean doesn’t say another word as he gets to work. Tonio lets out a muffled whine, his eyes still closed, his legs fighting to escape from the pain. He moves around, fighting, pushing against Alex. The teenager worries his lip, his hands spread out over the warm fur. He glances at Sean for a moment, watching him work before his fingers curl into Tonio’s fur.    
  
Sean looks up from the stitch he’s putting in. Tonio has stopped twitching as much, stopped moving around. His eyes meet Alex’s, who has turned a few shades paler, his teeth gritted as though he’s in pain.   
  
“You okay?” He asks. Alex nods once, gritting his teeth, Tonio still motionless against his hands. “I only have two more stitches to put in,”   
  
Alex doesn’t say a word as Sean continues carefully placing the stitches in, ignoring his hands shaking around the needle. Tonio stays quiet and subdued, his head lolling against the table. Sean sighs heavily as he inspects his work - it’s a little untidy but it’s holding well. He drops the needle onto the tray, the blood still sticking to his gloves. “All done,” He says quietly, his mouth dry.    
  
“Thank you,” Alex whispers, his hand stroking over Tonio’s brown fur. “Honestly, I don’t know what I’d have done without you,”   
  
“It was no problem, I was just doing-” Sean begins, only to pause as Tonio’s snout nuzzles against his hand. Sean’s fingers slowly dance over the soft velvet fur of Tonio’s snout as he finally sees the wolves’ eyes but they’re like none he’s ever seen before - they’re a beautiful, dark forest green. Tonio weakly nuzzles into his hand, whimpering under his breath, the green eyes still locked on him. Sean feels a smile ghost over his face. It’s as though the wolf is thanking him.    
  
His eyes  look almost  _ human _ , he thinks, not noticing Alex’s eyes narrowed as they focus on the pair.   


 

* * *

  
Sean is surprised when a week later, his phone buzzes with an unknown number. Ignoring Fernando’s disapproving glance on his back, he answers it as quietly as he can, confusion furrowing his brow.    
  
“Hello?”   
  
“Sean?” Alex’s voice is clear through the phone, worry threading through his voice.    
  
“How did you get this number?” Sean whispers hurriedly, he’s still not told Fernando of what went on in the clinic after hours.    
  
“I need your help,” Alex mutters quietly. “It’s Tonio…”    
  
“Tonio? The wolf?” Sean tries to keep his voice as he glances over to where Fernando is checking over one of the dogs. “He’s had a bullet inside him, he’s not going to be well for a week or two, Alex,”   
  
“No, something’s wrong,” Alex says with such finality. “He’s not himself, his temperature’s through the roof and-”   
  
“Could be a sign of infection,” Sean says quietly, keeping his eyes trained on Fernando. “I can stop by after work today and take a look at him,”   
  
“Thank you,” Alex says after a moment after he rattles off his address to Sean, promising to text him the details before he hangs up. Sean tells Fernando that it was one of his friends asking if he wanted to hang out later that evening as he slides his phone away and continues checking the dog’s stitches as his thoughts drift over to Tonio, the wolf with the human-looking, forest green eyes, trying to go over his training in his head, tries to remember if he got anything wrong.    
  


* * *

  
  
Sean glances up at the house in front of him, the leaves crunching underneath his battered sneakers as he makes his way across the grass over to the front porch. The house is enormous - all dark wood with very few lights on in the window. Sean almosts trips on the doorstep as he furrows his brow. He’s about to knock on the door when someone pulls it open  Sean finds himself face to face with Alex, his face is chalk white and his eyes are darker than usual.    
  
“You’re here,” he mutters, his eyes brightening ever so slightly as he stands aside.    
  
“Where is he?” Sean asks as Alex leads him inside - the house is nothing like Alex’s old spacious one, the one they used to play together in as children, before Alex changed, before he moved away and left Sean’s life. The staircase is carpeted, a few leather jackets and hooded coats are hung over the balustrade. A assortment of shoes litter the floor, kicked haphazardly onto the floor. Sean follows Alex down the hallway to a dimly lit room, the taller boy pausing at the doorway and pointing to a pile of blankets in the corner.    
  
Sean feels his heart slam against his chest as he slowly walks over to the pile of blankets. His fingers tighten on his medical bag as he hears a low, pitiful growl emit from underneath the pile, his heart breaking at the small sound. He tentatively peels back the blankets, layer after layer of them, to reveal damp chocolate brown fur. Tonio barely moves, he shifts his head to glance up at Sean before it immediately falls back against one of the blankets. Sean worries his lip, his eyes watching the wolves’s stomach, watching the shallow and hurried breaths. 

“You should have called me earlier,” Sean says quietly, as his hands slide over Tonio’s stomach, flinching immediately at the heat rolling off the dark fur.   
  
“What’s wrong with him?” Alex asks, his voice full of concern.    
  
Sean says nothing as he probes Tonio’s stomach before he moves over to the wound - the stitches are still stark and black against the fur, but they aren’t what worries Sean. It’s the reddened skin and the strange coloured pus oozing from underneath them. He curses under his breath, as he checks Tonio’s nose with his palm - noting the dryness - before he checks Tonio’s eyes. The wolf fights against Sean’s cold hands, the small, weak snarl bites through the air as Sean checks his eyes.The green is more diluted, watery than usual and less bright, which only serves to confirm Sean’s suspicions.    
  
“Has he been throwing up?”   
  
“He threw up a couple of times,” Alex says, still glancing at the wolf slumped against the blankets.    
  
“When?” Sean asks immediately, checking over Tonio’s vital signs.    
  
“Last night,” Alex says. “We cleaned him up and-”   
  
“Has he been eating and drinking? Going to the toilet?” Sean cuts across Alex’s words, his eyes moving to lock on the wound in Tonio’s side.    
  
“No, we have to keep forcing water down him,” Alex says quietly. “He’s not been great all week but I figured it was because of the wound, knew that he wasn’t going to be well,”   
  
“I think we left a little of the bullet behind,” Sean says, his hands still checking over Tonio’s fur.    
  
“What,” Alex hisses dangerously.    
  
“Look,” Sean snarls back, eyes narrowed. “I’ve never taken a bullet out of an animal before, you came to me in the middle of the night,”   
  
“I trusted you to take care of him,” Alex spits. “I trusted you not to make a mistake,”   
  
Sean bites his lip, tries not to glance at the dark eyes burning into him as he reaches into his bag for a pair of sharp scissors.   
  
“What are you doing?” Alex begins but Sean silences him with a stare.   
  
“I need to go in and find the fragment of bullet,” He says quietly, as he pulls out a bottle of anesthetic. Snapping on his gloves, he ignores Alex’s stare still on his hands as he begins to cut the stitches open. Alex watches him carefully, his eyes like obsidian, his face carefully controlled.    
  
“What do we need to do?” He asks quietly.    
  
“You need to hold Tonio down whilst I administer the anaesthetic. And if it’s anything like last time, you might have to hold him down whilst I operate since he seems resistant to the medicine,”   
  
Alex’s face pales further at Sean’s words as he watches the younger teenager draw the clear liquid into the syringe. Tonio shifts against Alex’s hand as Sean injects the anaesthetic into the skin, rubbing carefully on the chocolate brown fur, a small whimper expelling itself from Tonio’s throat. He waits a few minutes for it to take effect as he prepares his equipment, moving some of the blankets away from Tonio’s fur.    
  
“Do you think he will be okay?” Alex’s voice cuts through the silence. Sean finds himself worrying his lip as he checks over his tools one last time.    
  
“He will need a little more tlc,” Sean says. “And I’m going to need you to shine the penlight on this wound so I can hunt around for this shard of bullet,”   
  
“How big do you think it is?” Alex asks, looking down at Tonio, still motionless against the blankets.    
  
“Could be any size, but I’m thinking it’s going to be a little bit smaller or I’d have seen it when I was checking the wound first time around,” Sean says as he pins back the edges of the wound, noticing that they’re red and inflamed.    
  
He feels Alex’s eyes on him as he picks up his tweezers and indicates for the tall teenager to shine the light on the wound. Tonio does not move underneath his hands, his eyes closed and his chest slowly rising and falling. Sean grips the tweezers tighter, tries to ignore the slight shake of his hand as he digs into the wound with the sharp point. Tonio doesn’t stir underneath him, the wolf looking like he’s sleeping peacefully, the only sound is that of Alex’s gentle breathing as he holds the penlight steadily.  The wound opens up under the sharp instrument and Sean quickly grabs his cloth, dabbing away the bright red blood from the torn edges.    
  
“Any luck yet?” Alex asks, breaking the silence.    
  
Sean bites his tongue as he continues digging through the flesh, eyes flickering to check Tonio but the wolf remains out cold this time, his tongue lolling against the blankets. He swipes away the thin line of blood, wondering if this was the right thing to do, if he should have taken Tonio to Fernando. The tweezers continue to pick through the flesh, blood damp against the slightly damp fur. Sean squeezes on the sides of the wound, his eyes trying to pick out even the dimmest shine of metal, the tweezers still poking the flesh open.   
  
“What will it look like?” Alex asks.   
  
“It will either have a shine to it or look completely black,” Sean says, eyes still roving over the skin as he dabs away the fresh blood bubbling up.    
  
Alex stays silent again as Sean continues to squeeze the edges of the wound, looking out for any anomalies in the flesh. He can feel his frustration building, knows that he should call Fernando and just admit that he’s made a mistake, that he can’t do this. The tweezers dig deeper. He’s about to give it up and call up his boss when Alex’s voice cuts through the heavy silence.   
  
“There,” He says, quietly. “I just saw something,”   
  
“What?” Sean says, raising an eyebrow.    
  
“I just saw a tiny flash of black against the tweezer just then,” Alex says, pointing to where Sean’s tweezers were laid. Sean bites on his lip and carefully moves the tweezers, checking over the area slowly.    
  
“I can’t see anything,” He begins, wiping away the blood from the area carefully, wondering if he should just tell Alex to grab his phone when he sees it. The smallest line of black stands out stark against the pinky-red flesh.    
  
“Forceps,” Sean instructs, not wanting to let the thin line out of his sight. Alex presses them into his hand quickly. “There’s going to be blood,” He says, feeling his hands shake as the forceps slide against the flesh, closing around the thin metal line. He feels the metal scrape together as he gently begins to pull, hoping that this time he’s got the entire thing, hoping that Tonio doesn’t wake but the wolf remains motionless.   
  
The piece yields from the flesh quickly this time before Sean places it on his gloved hand, blood streaking across the latex before the blood bubbles up fresh in the wound. Alex pulls the cloth from Sean’s hand and presses down on the wound, his eyes turning to the small piece of metal resting on Sean’s hand.    
  
“That’s it?” He asks, eyes wide.    
  
The piece in question is merely more than a fingernail width of black metal. It looks innocuous resting against Sean’s latex glove.   
  
“You’d be surprised,” Sean says. “I need to check the wound to see if there’s anymore,” He continues as Alex pulls the cloth away as Sean checks and double checks for any more signs of metal. His eyes rove over the bloodied flesh, but it can see nothing, the forceps still holding the wound partially open.    
  
“I can’t see anything,” Alex says softly.    
  
“Me neither,” Sean says, placing the tweezers down as he presses down on the wound to stop the bleeding. “I’ll have to stitch this again,” He mutters, glancing down at the motionless wolf, still slumped against the blankets.    


* * *

 

  
Alex had carried Tonio to the “spare room” after the operation was over, eager to get the wolf away from the bloodied blankets. Sean had felt his eyes narrow as Alex had carried the wolf in his arms and placed him gently on the bed, covering him with fresh blankets. The wolf doesn’t move at all, still motionless against the soft sheets.    
  
“Spare room huh?” Sean says, glancing around at the room - it’s painted a cheerful blue colour and the bed is plush with several cushions piled high onto it. There’s some photographs on the desk, a leather bound journal on the bedside table. Sean bites his tongue as he watches Alex lower the wolf to the bed in an almost tender fashion. The silence stretches out between them for a moment before it’s broken by the tall teenager.

“Thank you,” Alex says softly as they survey Tonio resting against the blankets, his wound freshly sewn up by Sean’s shaking hands. 

  
“It’s no problem,” Sean says, pressing a hand through his hair. He can feel the tiredness sink into his bones, blood still clinging to his hands.    
  
“I’m sorry for earlier,” Alex continues, his voice soft and quiet, his eyes still locked on the sleeping Tonio. “I just...he means a lot to me, I wouldn’t have trusted anyone else with him,”   
  
Sean doesn’t say anything.   
  
“I’m sorry for being like that to you, I’m sorry for pushing you away again,” Alex says, his eyes never leaving Tonio’s stomach lifting up and down, his soft breaths breaking through the silence. “I just- I needed you,”   
  
“It’s fine,” Sean says, biting back a yawn behind his hand. “I understand,”   
  
“Alex?” Another voice cuts through the silence. Sean glances up to see a dark-haired young teenager poke his head around the door, his eyes were strangely blue. “I need your help,”   
  
“Can’t it wait, Pierre?” Alex says, his voice strained as he turns away from Tonio.    
  
“I really need your help, Alex,” The boy - Pierre - says, holding his stare before he disappears from the door. Alex sighs heavily, his eyes fall to Tonio before glancing over to Sean.   
  
“It’s okay,” Sean says, waving his hand. “I’ll check his bandages and then I better go,”   
  
Alex nods once before he slinks out of the room. Sean feels his shoulders slump as he hears Alex’s footsteps pad away. He’s about to check on Tonio’s bloodied bandages but his glance lands on the photographs on the dresser. Tentatively glancing over to the slightly ajar door, Sean moves over to the dresser, looking at the photographs displayed there. There’s one of a small boy, held in the arms of a young dark-haired woman and a man with chocolate brown hair. There’s another of the boy, slightly older, sitting in the woman’s knee, pressing a kiss to her cheek. 

The last photo is one of Alex - Sean recognises him in the school blazer, smiling widely for the camera. The boy who had poked his head around the door - Pierre - stands at his side, another boy with dark hair and a wide smile has his arm slung around Pierre’s shoulders. The boy on Alex’s other side is not one that Sean recognises. He has chocolate brown hair and a small smile on his lips, but it’s his eyes that make Sean take notice. They’re a dark forest green.    
  
His fingers curl around the photograph. However, as he’s about to lift it up, a small whine bites through the silence. Sean’s head immediately snaps over to the bed to find Tonio still curled up in the blankets, shifting slightly, the pain medication is clearly wearing off. He worries his lip, gaze moving towards the door again, his fingers moving to pick up the photo once more.    
  
“Who are you?” He whispers to himself, his eyes locked on the man with the green eyes.    
  
However, another whine tears through the room and he glances over to the bed to find the wolf twisting against the sheets, face twisted up in pain. He places the photograph down as another pitiful whine pushes from the wolf as it shifts against the bed, twisting to stop the pain. Sean immediately moves over to the wolf writhing with pain and settles down on the bed next to him. He tentatively holds out a hand, moving to softly stroke over the fur. It’s soft under his fingers and he feels the wolf immediately relax against his touch, the whine dying away from his lips as Sean strokes over the fur slowly and carefully.    
  
“It’s okay,” Sean mutters, his hand carding through the fur slowly, feeling the wolf relax into the touch, feeling his heart slow down once more. “You’re okay, Tonio,” He mutters, biting back another yawn in his hand. His hand continues to move over the chocolate brown fur as his eyelids slowly begin to shut, tiredness seeping into his bones, as he slumps wordlessly against the wolf, hand still pressing over the fur.   
  


* * *

  
  
“Sean?” Alex says, furrowing his brow as he pushes open the door of the bedroom, only to stop in his tracks, eyes wide. Before him, Sean is asleep on the bed, snoring softly. Tonio is curled up around him, snuggling close to him as though to protect him. He looks more peaceful than Alex has ever seen him before.   
  
Alex’s eyes narrow.    
  
“Lex,” Pierre’s voice cuts through the silence, grabbing his wrist tightly, his blue eyes distorting, becoming red. “Leave them,”   
  
“I just think something’s going on,” Alex says quietly. “I’ve never seen Tonio do that before, do you think--”   
  
“I don’t know,” Pierre cuts in. “But I know that you shouldn’t meddle in these things, just leave them, leave Tonio. He might actually sleep tonight,”   
  
“Something’s happening under my nose, Pear,”    
  
“Your nose needs to stay out of this, I know you want to protect him but -- maybe this is what Tonio needs, maybe  _ he’s _ what Tonio needs,” Pierre says softly.    
  
Alex looks as though he’s going to argue but Pierre, sensing his alpha’s temperament, shakes his head. “Don’t start, Lynn,” He says quietly. “Let them rest, we can deal with this in the morning,”   
  
Before Alex can argue, Pierre pulls his friend away by the wrist, gently closing the door behind them, Sean sleeps on soundly, still curled up against Tonio.    
  


* * *

  
  
Tonio wakes up, pain still jagged over the surface, still clinging to him as he feels something - someone close against him. He jolts, the wolf howls inside him, feels the warm skin pressing against himself, a strange scent that isn’t pack drifts through the air. A whine bubbles up from his lips before he can stop it, pain still brushing over his skin, the wound he sustained still burns white-hot against his skin but it feels different. It feels as though this time, it’s healing. His green eyes move to glance at his companion.   
  
He’s seen the boy before. The boy who had helped him, the boy who had taken the bullet out, the one who smelled of antiseptic and had warm hands and warm brown eyes. He’s fast asleep next to Tonio, curled up close, his hoodie is stained a little with blood and is riding up over his hip. Tonio’s eyes catch sight of familiar dark marks on the bronzed skin - he wonders how the human acquired them, if they were an accident or something more sinister. His wolf lets out a low, dull whine at the thought and the boy’s brow furrows in his sleep and he shifts closer, his hand still on Tonio’s fur-covered body. Tonio is confused, the boy doesn’t smell like pack, but at the same time, he smells familiar to his wolf. The scent of antiseptic, mint and some kind of flower, it melts over Tonio’s bones and his wolf calms down, purring at the scent. He’s not sure why he trusts the boy sleeping next to him, but for some reason, he just  _ does _ .    
  
His head falls against the arm of the boy, eyes still glancing over at the bruises, his tongue moves to gently ghost against the skin. It’s Tonio’s way to show gratitude, he reasons, his tongue darting over the warm skin. The boy doesn’t stir at all as Tonio shifts closer to him, determined to protect him whilst he sleeps. The pain cuts through his body as he moves, but he remains close to the boy, feels his heart beat slowly against his skin, his own heart beating in unison as his eyes slide shut.   
  


* * *

  
  
Sean sits down heavily on the floor outside the clinic, not caring that the pavement is still wet from the rain earlier. He cradles his arms around himself, fighting away the tears that are threatening to fall - the dog was old, he reasoned, there was nothing more that he or Fernando could have done. His hands are still covered in blood, the drying, flaking red substance still sticking under his fingernails, the sob is about to bubble up from his lips when he hears a small noise. Furrowing his brow, he lifts his gaze to see familiar green eyes staring at him from the bushes.    
  
He worries his lip, the tears immediately drying on his cheeks as he watches the green eyes carefully. A small chocolate brown snout pokes out from the leaves, followed by a small, skinny body. Sean feels a small smile ghost over his lips as he watches the wolf move nearer, tentative, his eyes trained on Sean. Sean slowly lifts his hand, outstretched to touch the wolf, only for Tonio to cower away at it, a small whimper dispels itself from his lips.    
  
“Hey, it’s okay,” Sean whispers. “I’m not going to hurt you,”    
  
Tonio cocks his head, as though he’s surveying Sean, sizing him up. Sean doesn’t move his hand at all, keeps it trained in front of him, as low as he can. After a few moments, the wolf moves forward, his head knocking Sean’s hand against his fur. Sean smiles at the motion and gently begins to rub Tonio behind the ears. Tonio melts against his touch, nudging his head against Sean’s hand, allowing the boy to card his fingers through the soft chocolate brown fur. Green eyes turn to look at him, watch him carefully, as though they’re waiting for something to happen, waiting for Sean to turn - and Sean needs to have a word with Alex about this wolf - as Sean’s hands slowly stroke over the fur.    
  
“Where did you come from?” Sean says, fingertips scratching over Tonio’s fur as the wolf melts against him, tongue lolling out at the sensation. “Did you escape from Alex?”   
  
Tonio leans into his touch, his tongue moving to lick at Sean’s fingers, eyes locked on him. “Why are you here?” Sean asks, watching Tonio’s pink tongue slowly dance over his fingers. The wolf has no response - as expected, he thinks - as Tonio’s tongue laps over his thumb, the eyes still locked on Sean.    
  
“You miss me?” Sean jokes as Tonio knocks his head against his fingers, his thumb moving over Tonio’s fur. He wonders how the wolf even knew where he was, wonders why he left Alex, why he was here. He feels the smile curl on his lips as his hand moves over the wolf.    
  
“You know though? Like I’m glad you’re here,” He pauses, biting his lip. “We lost a dog today, he was a good dog, been coming ever since I began my training and now he’s-” He stops, the sob bubbling up in his throat as he surges forward, burying his face in Tonio’s fur. The wolf doesn’t move for a moment, stays stoic as Sean sobs into his fur, tears finally falling from his eyes, the sobs wracking his body. He feels Tonio shift against him, his head dips against Sean’s, as though to comfort him. He sobs harder, letting everything out against the wolf, his hand tangling in the soft fur as Tonio remains where he is, green eyes locked on Sean as the tall teenager weeps. The chocolate fur becomes damp as Sean cries out all his anger and hurt, his fingers still gripping onto Tonio, as though, if he lets go, he will be lost. The sobs eventually quieten and Sean lifts his head away from the fur, tears still drying on his cheeks.    
  
“I bet you think I’m such an idiot, don’t you?” He whispers as Tonio glances at him. The wolf is silent for a moment before he moves forward, his stout ghosting against Sean’s face. Sean feels his warm tongue lap over his cheek, catching the salty liquid on his tongue. Sean pulls his face away, giving the wolf a watery smile, his hand moving to fist into the brown fur.   
  
“Thank you,” He mutters, patting Tonio’s neck, brown eyes still locked with green ones, ones that still look remarkably human.    
  


* * *

  
  
Sean has the job of figuring out how to get Tonio back to Alex’s house after his shift ends. The wolf refuses to sit on the back seat, whimpering and whining when Sean tries to shut the door. He finally opens the front door and Tonio jumps in, curling up in the passenger seat of his Honda CR-V. Sean pulls off his hoodie and places it over the top of the wolf to hide him from view, Tonio’s muzzle poking out from underneath the white material, green eyes focused on him.   
  
“Don’t give me that look,” Sean says as he starts the engine.    
  
The ride is silent apart from the rap music slowly blaring out of the speakers, Tonio still laid against the seat underneath Sean’s hoodie. “You know, I bet Alex is out looking for you,” Sean says, looking away from the road to meet the green eyes. “He’s probably going to kill me for not bringing you back sooner,”   
  
Tonio just continues to stare, Jakarta printed in huge letters hanging down over his head, tail thumping against the seat. “Oh well, it’s not like he can rip my throat out is it?” Sean says as Alex’s house slowly comes into view. He’s not standing, waiting at the door, Sean reasons as he parks up next to Alex’s Aston Martin and kills the engine.    
  
“You ready to go?” He asks Tonio who remains slumped against the passenger seat under Sean’s hoodie. “Come on, Tonio, don’t you want to go home?”   
  
Tonio cocks his head slightly, surveying Sean carefully as he takes the sleeve of the hoodie into his mouth. “Hey-” Sean begins, moving to pull the hoodie away but Tonio growls under his breath, the hoodie still in his mouth. Sean sighs heavily as he opens the door and gets out, moving to let Tonio out. The wolf hops from the seat, still dragging Sean’s hoodie in his mouth.   
  
“Tonio, give it back,” Sean says, chasing the wolf up onto the porch of the house, only for the front door to open, Alex standing in the doorway with a smile on his lips.    
  
“Wondered where you were,” He says, looking down at the chocolate brown wolf who immediately goes to Alex, nuzzling at his leg, the hoodie still between his teeth. He proceeds to disappear through Alex’s legs and into the house, hoodie dragging behind him. Alex gives Sean an apologetic look.    
  
“Thank you for finding him,” He says, softly. “He just disappeared and some of my friends went out searching for him and-”   
  
“It’s okay,” Sean says, hands finding their way into his pockets. “He really helped me today, had a bad day and he really helped-”   
  
“I’m glad,” Alex says, the small smile still playing on his lips. “Thank you for keeping him safe by the way, for looking after him,”   
  
“Yeah,” Sean says, looking down at his feet, scraping his trainer over the doorstep. “It’s fine, you know me I’m a friend to all animals-”   
  
“Yeah, I know,” Alex replies, an awkward laugh rolling off his lips before silence stretches out between the two for what seems like an eternity. It’s broken by Sean’s stomach rumbling, tearing through the late evening air. It’s been hours since he last ate, he’d had a few bites of a sandwich before the dog had come in. Alex chuckles at the sound - Sean hasn’t heard him laugh in years -  smile still tugging on the corner of his mouth. “Do you want to stay for dinner? I mean, it’s the least we could do,”   
  
Sean knows he should say no, knows that he should stay away, that he should think about what Alex did but his stomach gets another lurch and he gives in. “Okay,” He says, shaking his head. “I’ll stay,”   
  
He doesn’t see the green eyes watching him from the stairs, mouth still closed around the hoodie, tail thumping with excitement on the carpet.    
  


* * *

  
  
Sean finds himself sitting at the table with two teenagers he’s never met before; he recognises them both - Pierre from their brief encounter a few days earlier, a small dark-haired boy who doesn’t smile and is quite shy. He barely speaks to Sean, sipping at his water and looking down at the floor. The other boy, who was in the photo with Alex, the one with the dark hair and the bright blue eyes, he finds out is called Stoffel and he’s much more sociable. He watches Stoffel curve his hand around Pierre’s, giving him a small smile as Alex finally brings dinner to the table. Sean gets a whiff of melted cheese sauce and cooked meat as Alex places the dish of lasagna in the middle.    
  
“Looks amazing,” Sean says, watching the swirls of smoke drift up from the dish, his stomach protesting.   
  
Alex begins cutting up the lasagna into smaller pieces, grabbing Sean’s plate first. “Dig in,” He says. “There’s some garlic bread in the oven and- oh shit! The garlic bread!” He drops the serving spoon into the dish and disappears into the kitchen. Pierre chuckles under his breath as he takes over, carefully placing some of the lasagne onto Stoffel’s plate before he loads up Alex’s and his own just as Alex reappears, carrying a tray. His hair is slightly mussed, as though he’s been running his fingers through it, as he smiles widely at the table.    
  
“It’s not burnt,” He declares triumphantly.    
  
“For once,” Pierre says, flashing a wide grin as Alex glares at him, placing the garlic bread on a plate in the middle of the table. Sean snags a piece and waits for Alex to sit down before they all fall to picking up their cutlery and eating. Sean almost groans as he takes his first bite of lasagna, it’s wonderfully rich and creamy, the meat is cooked to perfection and the pasta is smooth, the cheese melts against his mouth.    
  
“This is amazing,” He says, taking a bite of the garlic bread. “Who made it?”    
  
“Ton-I mean, we bought it from the supermarket,” Alex says, his cheeks turning pink.    
  
“This isn’t from the supermarket,” Sean says, with narrowed eyes. “It’s definitely homemade, just tell me who made it-” He says, pausing as someone brushes against his hand under the table.    
  
He furrows his brow, feeling the furry muzzle of something press up against his fingers, the ghost of a tongue dancing against his thumb. Green eyes stare up at him, Tonio’s face pushed against his fingers, his tongue moves to lick the sauce off Sean’s thumb. A wide smile brushes over Sean’s face as he gently strokes Tonio’s face, the fur still soft against his fingers.  Sean falls into conversation with Stoffel easily, his hands still stroking over Tonio’s head, feeding him small amounts of lasagna and smiling as Tonio’s tongue licks the sauce away.    
  
“I don’t usually get to eat food like this, it’s usually ready to make noodles at my house,” Sean says between bites.    
  
“Your parents not big fans of cooking?” Stoffel asks.   
  
Sean stiffens slightly at the mention, pasting on a smile. “You could say that, I guess, I don’t spend a lot of time at home...I’m at work a lot,” He says, worrying his lip as he places his fork back down on the plate. Tonio pushes his head against Sean’s knee, breath curling over his trousers. “That was amazing, thank you,”   
  
“You’re welcome,” Alex says, placing his own fork and knife down. “Guess we better clear up,”   
  
Alex shakes his head as he picks up the plates. “No chance, you’re a guest,”   
  
“It’s the least I can do for interrupting your dinner-” Sean says, but Tonio whines against his leg, big green eyes staring up at Sean, almost pleading. Sean sighs and continues to stroke the wolf sitting against his legs. He doesn’t see Alex cut up another piece of the lasagne and place it onto a plate and he doesn’t see Alex’s eyes burning into him, watching his hand carefully.    
  


* * *

  
  
Alex waits about ten minutes after the door closes before he goes up to the room, immediately spotting Tonio hiding under the blankets, his chocolate coloured snout poking out from under them.   
  
“Tonio,” He says softly, but there’s no answer. The wolf is motionless, eyes trained on Alex. “Tonio, we need to talk about this,”   
  
Silence stretches out in front of the pair. “Don’t ignore me, Tonio, I just want to know what’s going on,”   
  
_ Nothing is going on. _ Tonio’s soft voice brushes over his mind, his eyes resting on Alex.    
  
“So is there a reason that you leave the house to go to Sean? A reason that you let him stroke you, let him put his hands on you?”   
  
_ It’s different. I can’t explain it. _ _  
_ _  
_ “You’ve never trusted anyone before,” Alex says, quietly. “Why him?”   
  
_ I don’t know, I can’t explain it, I just...he calms me down, I feel safe when I’m with him. _   
  
Alex stops to contemplate Tonio’s words. “Is he- could he be-”   
_  
_ _ You know that’s impossible, Alex.  _ The voice sounds heartbroken against Alex’s mind and he whines at the hurt surging through their connection.  _ It can’t happen that way, you know that it’s not like that-  _ _  
_   
“Hey, calm down,” Alex says, his hand moving to brush against Tonio’s muzzle. “I’m just worried about you, you never come out of your wolf form anymore,” Tonio doesn’t say anything else, leaning into Alex’s touch. “You seem to only come out when there’s nobody around, you disappear and I worry about you-”   
  
_ You don’t have to worry.  _   
  
“You’re my beta, of course I worry,” Alex says, a small smile on his face. “It’s kinda my job,”   
  
_ I don’t know what it is about him, Alex. I’m just drawn to him, I just like to be around him. I just need to be with him, the wolf inside me wants to spend time with him.  _ _  
_ _  
_ “I just don’t want you getting hurt,”   
_  
_ _ Weren’t you the one who hurt Sean? _ _  
_ _  
_ “Tonio, don’t start, I was a young wolf then, I didn’t know what the bloody hell was going on at that point. I didn’t want Sean exposed to that world,”   
  
_ I can understand that. _ _  
_   
“He didn’t,” Alex says, looking down at the floor. “I just...can I ask you something?”   
  
_ Sure.  _   
  
“Do you trust him?”   
  
_ Without a doubt.  _ Tonio’s answer is instantaneous and with it, Alex finds the words dying on his lips as he strokes over Tonio’s fur, listening to his beta’s heartbeat slowly drop, his breathing evening out as he drifts into sleep. It’s not until he leaves that he notices the white hoodie that Tonio had taken from Sean draped over the wolf, tucked underneath his paw and feels the small smile creep up on his lips as he turns off the light and closes the door, leaving his beta to sleep.    
  


* * *

  
  
Tonio appears at the clinic the next day. Sean spots him as he grabs a few minutes outside for his lunch break, sees the familiar green eyes staring back at him. He sighs heavily as the wolf tentatively moves forward as though asking for permission from the human. Sean slowly lifts his hand out and Tonio slowly moves forward, moving to push his head against Sean’s hand.    
  
“What are you doing here again?” He asks, stroking over the soft fur. Tonio remains silent, his green eyes locked on Sean as his hands fold over his muzzle. Sean offers up a piece of his turkey sandwich which Tonio immediately takes from his hand gratefully. He takes a bite himself, only to stop when he sees green eyes fixed on him.    
  
“Does Alex not feed you?” He says as he tears off another bit of sandwich, feeding it carefully to the small wolf. Tonio eats it quickly, his tail thumping against the pavement as he chews on the turkey, thoughtfully prepared by Fernando - he never was able to get food from home, he never took anything from home. They finish off the sandwich between them, Sean allowing the wolf to lick the crumbs from his fingers as he leans back against the wall. Tonio follows him, nuzzling his hand and Sean sighs as he feels his fingers stroke through the soft fur.    
  
“You’re such a big softie,” Sean says, as Tonio brushes against him, pushing the sleeve of his long-sleeved sweater up, rubbing his nose against Sean’s wrist. However, as the pressure increases, Sean lets out a small groan of pain which has Tonio recoiling, green eyes settling on Sean, on his exposed wrist. The golden skin is marked by dark bruising - which looks like finger marks - encircling his thin wrist like some form of bracelet.    
  
“It’s fine,” Sean whispers, though he’s not sure if he’s trying to convince the wolf or himself as he tries to shove the sweater sleeve down over the dark marks. Tonio growls low in his throat. “Hey,” Sean scolds. “Don’t give me that shit,”    
  
Tonio’s ears go back and he growls again, lower this time, eyes still locked on the bruises. “I told you, it’s fine,” He hisses, pushing his sleeve down.    
  
“What’s fine?” Another voice calls out and Sean stiffens as he glances up to see Fernando standing in the doorway. “Why have you got a wolf in your lap?” He says, concern spreading across his features.    
  
“He’s Alex’s wolf,” Sean says quietly, watching as Tonio’s hackles rise, the wolf stiffening against his hands. “It’s okay, Tonio,” He mutters softly, his hands still carding through the soft brown fur.    
  
“Tonio? Alex’s wolf?” Fernando says, cocking his head slightly. “I thought that you two were no longer friends,”    
  
Sean worries his lip. “Yeah, we cleared the air a little,”   
  
Fernando doesn’t look convinced. “Please be careful, Sean. I don’t want you getting hurt again,”   
  
“I’m fine,  _ Dad _ ,” Sean jokes as he strokes over Tonio’s fur. He doesn’t see the green eyes locked on the brown ones of his boss, the flash of red that appears over Fernando’s eyes for a moment.    
  


* * *

  
  
Tonio appears every day after that. Sean will go and eat his sandwich, made by Nando, outside under the eaves of the clinic. Every day, he will see green eyes staring at him from the bush before Tonio slowly appears. Every day, Sean feels the smile on his lips as his hands card through the soft fur, as Tonio licks the last crumbs away from Sean’s fingers as they share the sandwich - sometimes it’s turkey, sometimes it’s ham and cheese, sometimes it’s roast beef - Sean discovers that peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are strangely Tonio’s favourite. The wolf seems to devour them, licking the peanut butter from Sean’s fingers afterwards with a happy sigh.    
  
Sean gets used to having the wolf around, smiling as the wolf leans against his legs, eating the sandwich that Fernando prepared as he talks about things - talks about how he’s not been sleeping well, his exams are coming up, about Alex, how they used to be friends. Tonio listens, his green eyes fixed on Sean and there’s times when he forgets he’s talking to a wolf. However, there’s one day that Tonio doesn’t show up. Sean sits outside as always and opens up the sandwich bag - today’s offering is meatball and melted cheese, something Sean has never given Tonio before - but the green eyes are missing from the bush, the wolf is not in his usual place.    
  
“Tonio?” Sean calls out, unwilling to take a bite of the sandwich. But the wolf never shows up. Sean waits for over half an hour for the green eyes to appear but they never do. He shoves the sandwich down as quickly as he can, ignoring the knot building in his stomach. He wonders if something has happened to Tonio, if he should call Alex as he pushes the rest of the sandwich into his mouth and stumbles back into the clinic. He’s distracted for the rest of his shift, trying not to think about Tonio, trying not to think about if he’s in trouble or if he’s hurt. He grabs his phone out of his pocket a few times before he realises that he didn’t save Alex’s number.    
  
“Go home,” Fernando’s voice cuts through Sean’s thoughts. “Your thoughts are somewhere else,”   
  
Sean worries his lip. “I’m sorry-”   
  
“Go and sort your thoughts out, Sean,” Fernando says with a wry smile, shooing the teenager away with his hand. “I barely have anything else to do anyway,”   
  
Sean nods, picking up his coat. He doesn’t see Fernando’s eyes flash red as he sniffs the air. “Full moon, tonight,” He mutters under his breath, watching the door close on his young protege.    
  


* * *

  
  
“Tonio, I know you’re under there,” Alex says quietly, staring at the motionless blankets piled up on Tonio’s bed.    
  
There’s no answer though, his beta is  _ choosing _ to ignore him in that moment and Alex sighs. “Tonio, I’m not going to yell at you-”   
  
_ Yes, you are. You have that tone of voice.  _ Tonio’s voice dances through Alex’s mind.    
  
Alex sighs. “Tonio-”   
  
_ I haven’t seen him today. I don’t think I could stay in control.  _ _  
_ _  
_ “It’s full moon tonight, do you think you’ll be okay?” Alex asks but he’s met with silence.    
  
“Tonio-”   
  
_ I don’t know, Alex.  _ Tonio admits, fear laced in his words.    
  
“We could lock you in the room if you needed it,” Alex says, worrying his lip. 

He doesn’t want to, given Tonio’s past, and the look of horror in Tonio’s eyes is immediately evident. He begins shaking, a weak howl brushing past his lips -  _ please, please, don’t make me Alex _ \- his eyes blink from green to gold in a matter of seconds and Alex knows that he’s fighting the instinct, fighting against the wolf threatening to take over. He finds himself pulling off his clothes as he shifts, his back contorting with rigid movements as lines of ebony black fur appear over pale skin. Tonio whines under his breath, still encased under the blankets, as his alpha changes before him. Alex immediately takes the blanket in his mouth, pulling it back as he settles his body around Tonio’s. Tonio still whines against him, his voice still echoing inside Alex’s mind as the alpha curls closer to his shaking, quivering beta. He nuzzles his muzzle up against Tonio’s, licking his beta gently and carefully, tongue carding over the soft chocolate brown fur. Tonio continues to shudder against him, shaky pleads still hanging in the air, his eyes still shifting between green and gold. Alex looks down at his beta, still shaking in fear, looking small - tiny - against himself.  _  
_ _  
_ _ I’m sorry.  _ Tonio finally forces the words out, still shaky.    
  
_ It’s okay, I’ve got you.  _ Alex replies, his tongue still dancing over Tonio’s fur - he knows that this calms his young beta down, having done it so many times before.  _ It’s okay, we will sort something out. I promise. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I don’t want him to hate me.  _ Tonio’s voice is barely audible.  _ I don’t want him to see the monster I truly am.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ You’re not a monster, Tonio. You never have been.  _ Alex says softly, licking over the soft fur around Tonio’s ear. _ Sean would never think that of you anyway. He’s not like that.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ What is he like?  _ Tonio asks shakily.    
  
_ Shouldn’t it be you answering that question?  _ Alex says with a small smile on his lips.  _ No, he’s an amazing friend and I was stupid to let him go. He’d do anything for anyone, he’s kind, intelligent, loyal, trustworthy and incredibly funny.  _   
_  
_ _ He sounds perfect.  _ Tonio says softly, nuzzling into Alex’s black fur.    
  
_ He’s not perfect, Tonio. _ Alex replies, allowing his beta’s nose to push into his fur, his tongue still licking over the wolf’s face.  _ He’s a nice guy but I don’t want you getting hurt, I didn’t want to bring him into this world of ours.  _

_ And I’ve ruined it all for you, I’m sorry.  _ Tonio says, whining. _ I can’t fight this, I can’t fight this instinct.  _ _  
_ _  
_ Alex furrows his brow. He knows that usually wolves actively seek out their mates during the full moon, but he know what happened to Tonio’s mate, he knows that the beta never got the chance to meet him. He’s asked Tonio what’s happening between himself and Sean, but even the Italian isn’t sure of what’s going on and Alex doesn’t want to press his beta and make him feel worse. Tonio is already the hardest one to handle when it comes to the full moon period, the one who still struggles to stay in control.    
  
_ Tonio. _ Alex begins but the beta shakes his head, the shaking still continuing as Alex leans in and nuzzles him, their fur rubbing against the others, his tongue moving over Tonio’s neck.  _ You’re okay, you’re safe. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ He wants to be with him, Alex.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Who wants to be with who?  _ Alex asks, keeping his voice calm and steady.    
  
_ The wolf. He wants to go to Sean. But I’m scared if he does, he will try and mark Sean and claim him as his own.  _ Tonio says, his voice still slightly shaky.  _ I don’t think I can control myself tonight.  _ _  
_ _  
_ Alex says nothing else as he remains curled around Tonio for what seems like a lifetime, rubbing his head against the smaller, lighter coloured wolf. His touch alone - the touch of an alpha, Tonio’s alpha is enough to placate him for now - he slumps against Alex, clearly exhausted with a low whine, his tail finally stilling against the floor. However, as soon as the calm washes over the pair, it is immediately destroyed as Tonio stiffens in Alex’s hold, scrambling upright.    
  
_ What’s wrong?  _ Alex asks, hackles raised.    
  
_ He’s here. Sean’s here.  _ _  
_ _  
_ Alex feels the curse brush past his lips as he sends a message to Pierre and Stoffel, telling them to stay away. They are slightly more advanced in terms of control, but Sean is new to their dynamic and Pierre certainly still doesn’t trust him. As he hears the knock echo through the house, he shifts back to human form, throwing on a pair of trousers as he signals for Tonio to remain where he is. Sean looks surprised when he opens the door, his dark eyes immediately going to Alex’s pale, lightly freckled chest, blush flaring on his cheeks.    
  
“Hey, I was just wondering if Tonio was okay?” Sean says, regretting the words as they leave his lips.    
  
Alex’s brow furrows. “Yeah, he’s fine, why?”   
  
“I just...I was- he’s been coming to see me for weeks during lunch and he didn’t show up today and I-” Sean says, worrying his lip and scraping his trainer along the pavement. “I’m sorry, I just-”   
  
“It’s fine,” Alex mutters. “He’s not been well recently and-”   
  
“Do you want me to take a look at him?” Sean says immediately.    
  
“Look, Sean,” Alex says, brushing a hand through his messy, dark hair. “I understand you want to help but well, he’s just a little tired at the moment and he’s resting,”   


“Okay,” Sean deflates and Alex feels the guilt slam into his chest. 

He knows it’s wrong to tell Sean another lie, after all the ones in the past destroyed the friendship between them, but he has to protect his pack, protect Sean from knowing about this world. “Just let me know if I can do anything for you,” He says, smiling as Alex gently pats him on the shoulder.    
  
“Thanks,” Alex says, a small smile playing on his lips. “It means alot that you were worried about him but he’s fine, honestly, be right as rain in a few days,”   
  
Sean nods once before he turns on his heel and goes back towards his trusty Honda. He doesn’t see the red eyes watching him as he starts the engine and pulls out of Alex’s driveway.    
  


* * *

  
  
_ Is he gone? _   Tonio’s voice fills the air as Alex closes the door. The alpha glances up to see his beta standing at the top of the stairs, still shivering slightly, his eyes still flickering between gold and green. His tail is between his legs and there’s pain clearly evident on his face.    
  
“He’s gone,” Alex says quietly. “I’m sorry, I had to send him away,”   
  
_ I’m scared, Alex. I’m scared of what I’ll do. When he was at the door, I wanted nothing more than to come to him. I don’t think I can do this.  _ Tonio says, voice wavering as he fights to gain control back, his eyes flashing gold.    
  
“Tonio,” Alex begins, taking a tentative step. “You need to control yourself,”   
  
However, Tonio answers with a low growl. His eyes, completely gold, fix on his alpha.    
  
“Tonio,” Alex says in a warning voice but Tonio ignores him, the scent of Sean still clinging to his palms, the beta lunges forward. Alex reacts quickly, shifting into wolf form to tackle Tonio and stop him from escaping through the door. Tonio growls at him as he presses his weight against the smaller, lighter beta - red eyes locking on golden ones.    
  
_ Stand down _ , Alex commands.    
  
Tonio pays him no attention, the growl ripping itself from his lips, spittle landing in his fur, his golden eyes still locked on Alex.   
  
_ Tonio, I said stand down. _ Alex commands but the beta mashes his jaws at Alex, eyes still glowing as Alex pins him to the floor, his claws trying to drag along Alex’s fur. Alex growls back, snapping his own jaws, trying to exert his authority. His howl draws the attention of his fellow alpha, Pierre barrelling into the room, already in wolf form. He growls as his red eyes fall on Alex still fighting to keep Tonio on the floor.    
  
_ We need to get him to the room. _ Alex instructs and those words seem to make Tonio thrash harder, to fight against his two alphas. Pierre nods once, growling at Tonio as the beta makes an attempt to fasten his jaws onto Pierre’s toffee coloured fur. Tonio still rolls around underneath Alex and the alpha begins to wonder if he should use his Alpha status to call rank, to force his beta into submission. However, before he can decide,a familiar howl tears through the air and Tonio suddenly goes lax against him, his ears pinning back and his tail moving between his legs, his wolf finally deciding to submit.    
  
Stoffel stands in the doorway, already in his wolf form, smaller and more compact than his two alphas, his caramel coloured fur shining in the light. The beta’s golden eyes fix on Tonio and he howls again, a little lower and Tonio relaxes against Alex’s body.    
_  
_ _ Tonio, can you hear me? _ Alex immediately asks, looking down at his beta.    
  
_ Sorry, I let him take over for a minute there.  _ Tonio’s response is breathless, his coat shifting up and down as he takes in breathes, his eyes shifting between green and gold once more as he fights to gain back control of himself. He glances over towards Stoffel who still hasn’t moved.  _ Thanks, Stoff.  _ _  
_ _  
_ He says nothing else as Alex gets to his feet, his tongue ghosting over Tonio’s forehead. The beta slowly climbs to his paws shakily, still whining under his breath, his tail still between his legs, his ears pinned back.    
  
_ Alex. _ Stoffel’s voice stops him. _ I want to stay with Tonio in the room tonight. We are betas, I think it would be best if we stuck together.  _ _  
_ _  
_ Alex watches Tonio relax slightly at Tonio’s words as he nods once. _We all will stay in the room tonight._ He says, watching Pierre’s imperceptible nod.    
  


* * *

  
  
Sean manages to get about twenty minutes away from Alex’s house when he hears strange noises from his engine - almost like a rattling noise - as smoke begins pouring from the bonnet.    
  
“Oh, fuck,” He mutters under his breath, pressing a hand through his hair. He climbs out of the car and slides his phone out of his pocket, contemplating calling Fernando, only to find that he has no reception in the area. “Fuck,” He whispers, fighting the urge to kick at his tyres as he pulls his hoodie tighter around himself. His parents will be expecting him home soon. He worries his lip as he pulls the fabric of his hoodie over the bruises on his wrists, tries to pretend they’re not there as he climbs back into his car and tries to start the engine.   
  
His heart pushes up against his ribcage as he turns the key in the lock, hears the spark plugs trying to come to life but the engine doesn’t start. It remains silent, the dread sinking into Sean’s bones as he thinks about his father’s fists slamming into him, his stepmother watching as his father screams at him for ruining his car.    
  
“Fuck,” He says, slamming his hands against the leather steering wheel, tears pricking in the corners of his eyes. His hoodie has ridden up, showing off the yellowing bruises circling his wrists and he bites down on his lip as the tears leak out of his eyes. “Fuck,” He mutters again to himself as he pulls himself out of his car. He can’t go back to Alex’s house. He will ask too many questions, questions Sean isn’t willing to answer. He knows that the woods to the left of him lead out into his back garden. Pushing his phone back into his pocket, he glances towards the darkening woods and begins his descent into them.    
  
It seems to darken further as Sean makes his way through the woods, the only sound is that of the birds twittering away under the thick canopy of trees and the leaves crunching beneath his battered trainers. Sean is at ease within the woods; he and Alex used to run around in these woods as children, before everything changed, before she grabbed his hand for the last time, before he sank into the bottom of a bottle. Sean closes his eyes, lets the sounds of the forest wash over him. The sky darkens further, the moon - like a silver penny - shines brightly as all traces of the day are washed away by inky, dark sky. The trees begin to take on new shapes around him but he’s not phased by them, they seem to dance with the shadows they create. However, the serene feeling soon vanishes by the faint sound of a twig snapping.    
  
Sean immediately pauses, senses on high alert. He stops, hand moving towards his wallet, curving around the swiss army knife that Fernando bought him last Christmas. He worries his lip as he takes another tentative step, only for another twig to snap. Sean rears around, coming face to face with an enormous wolf. However, the wolf before him is like one he has never seen before - it’s a dirty blonde colour from what Sean can pick out but it’s the wolves eyes that are unnerving. They’re a blood red. The wolf snarls at Sean who finds himself slowly backing away, only to hear growling behind him.    
  
He keeps eyes contact on the enormous blonde wolf, remembering what he’s been taught. He knows that wolves are predatory animals, that he must show himself to be the alpha male. “Fuck,” He mutters under his breath, his eyes never leaving the red ones, no matter how much they unnerve him as he spreads his hands out to make himself as big as possible.    
  
“Stand down,” He commands, watching the blonde wolf’s jaw peel back into a snarl, razor sharp teeth on display. “Don’t you dare,” Sean calls out, his brow furrowed as he tries to inject as much anger into his voice as he can. His hand is still outstretched as the wolf takes a step forward, spittle flying from its jaws. “Stay right there,” He says to the wolf, who pauses for a moment, taking in the gleaming swiss army knife in Sean’s hand.    
  
However, the wolf growls again as it surges forward, catching Sean by surprise as the wolf lands on his chest, knocking the air out of him. He feels his back scream out in pain as the wolf snarls at him, spittle flying across his cheek. Jaws mash dangerously close to his cheek, as he scrambles to get his fingernails out of the dirt, the knife has fallen from his grasp in the wolves attack. Sean pants out, trying to push the wolf off, its claws sticking into his hoodie, making holes in the thick fabric as he fights to get away. The smell of blood pushes through the air. The wolf presses its wet nose against his skin, its jaw barely brushing against Sean’s skin when he hears another howl, louder this time. There’s a series of yelps, presumably from the other wolves around him, as Sean feels the pressure released from his chest. He catches a glimpse of an enormous jet-black wolf with gleaming red eyes, snarling at the blonde one, the pair of them stalking around one another.    
  
Sean watches, still lying on the floor, watches the pair of wolves circle around each other, jaws snapping, spittle flying as they both size one another up. He worries his lip as he watches the darker one move closer, scenting the air before it does something extraordinary. The dark wolf leans in and nuzzles the blonde one, its muzzle pressing against the light coloured fur as it lets out a howl. The blonde one howls in response and the two bump noses, their hackles slowly lowering.    
  
“What the-” Sean mutters under his breath and the pair glance at him. He stiffens for a moment as the dark haired wolf bumps the blonde one last time before it slowly makes its way over to Sean. Sean remains still as the wolf slowly lowers down, its jaws slowly opening, prompting a jolt of panic in Sean’s chest before it’s mouth curves around Sean’s hoodie, tugging him upwards. They meet eyes for a moment - Sean glances into the deep red eyes - and he feels like he knows them, like he’s seen them before. The wolf finally lets go of his sleeve and nudges him away, eyes moving to the blonde wolf one last time. Sean slowly begins to move away from the wolf, looking behind him, remembering to keep eye contact. The red eyes of the large dark wolf stay on him the entire time as he disappears into the canopy of trees.    


Sean waits until he’s clear of the two wolves before he sags for a moment, rubbing a shaky hand over his face. He realises he’s dropped his knife and curses under his breath, the knife that Fernando had given him for passing his exams just after Christmas. Another twig snaps and he curses again, hoping that the blonde wolf hasn’t followed him. However, as he turns, his chest jolts at the sight of the enormous black wolf coming towards him, with a familiar knife glinting, held in his mouth.   
  
He stays stationary as the wolf moves closer, standing by Sean’s feet. Sean holds out his hand and the wolf slowly drops the knife into his hand, their eyes meeting once more. Sean swears that he sees a flash of dark brown in them, just for a second.    
  
“Thank you,” He whispers as he moves away, still keeping his eyes trained on the wolf as he walks away, keeping the knife in his hand. He doesn’t see the wolf waiting for him to disappear into the trees before it continues following him, red eyes gleaming in the moonlight, watching the human as he finally reaches the clump of thinning trees at the edge of the forest. The wolf waits for Sean to climb over the wall of his garden before it lets out a long and low howl that echoes into the night.    
  


* * *

  
Tonio appears two days later as normal, tail between his legs, green eyes fixed on Sean. Sean watches the wolf slowly approach him as he holds his hand out. Tonio immediately nuzzles his hand as Sean fists into the chocolate brown fur.    
  
“Where have you been?” He says, smiling as his hands card through Tonio’s fur. The wolf lets out a low-pitched whine, bumping his head against Sean’s hand. Sean’s shirt rides up over his wrist, showing off a new circle of bruises on his tanned skin. Tonio’s eyes land on the marks and he whines, rubbing his fur over them gently.    
  
Sean smiles sadly. “I’m okay,” He says, quietly. “I just...he was angry with me for leaving my car behind, that’s all,” He rubs his fingers over Tonio’s fur. “It was my fault really...it always is,” He pauses. “I just...he changed so much since we lost my mom, started drinking more, started taking it out on me...work is the only time I get away from him,” He says softly, biting down on his lip.   
  
Tonio nuzzles at his hand, his tongue ghosting over Sean’s fingers. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this, I’ve never told anyone before. I just...I take it because I feel like I’m to blame for all this sometimes,” Sean says, not looking at the wolf before him. “I can handle it though, I can handle the pain,”   
  
Tonio’s tongue moves over the fresh bruise. “What pain?” A familiar voice says and Sean finds himself sliding his sleeve down, hiding the bruise as Tonio whines. Alex stands before Sean with a furrowed brow.    
  
“You know whatever garden you keep him in isn’t keeping him there,” Sean tries to make a joke.    
  
“I don’t have a garden to keep him in, he decides where he likes to go. He prefers the woods but if you’re gonna feed him, he’d rather take that,” Alex says, a small smile on his lips.    
  
“I can’t say no to those eyes,” Sean says, rubbing Tonio’s snout. “They’re so unlike any wolves eyes I’ve seen before...they’re so green, usually wolves eyes are more of a light green colour but his are so dark, they’re beautiful,” He shakes his head. “Sorry, I assume you came to collect him-”   
  
Alex worries his lip. “Actually, I came to apologise for what I said a few days ago. I was really short with you and I am sorry for that,”   
  
“It’s fine,” Sean begins waving his hand to dismiss Alex’s words but the tall teenager shakes his head.    
  
“No, it was a really shitty move, you’ve really bonded with him and I guess I was worried that he was seriously ill and-”   
  
“It’s okay, I would have done the same,” Sean says, shaking his head. Tonio moves closer to Sean’s hand, tongue licking over his fingers once more.    
  
“I was wondering if you wanted to have dinner again with us tonight? I mean, To-I made meatballs,” Alex says, biting his lip. Sean feels Tonio stiffen against him for a moment, as though he’s anticipating Sean’s answer.    
  
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Sean says, thinking about the bruises circling his arms.    
  
“Please,” Alex pleads.    
  
Sean glances at Tonio, glances into the dark green eyes and feels his resolve crumble. “Okay, fine,” He says, ruffling Tonio’s fur. The wolf gives him an excited bark in return, the smile curves over Alex’s lips.    
  
“I’ll pick you up after your shift,” He says, watching Sean and Tonio carefully.    
  


* * *

  
  
As Alex pulls into the driveway and kills the engine, Sean spots Pierre and Stoffel wearing little more than shorts playing around with a ball on the front lawn. Pierre tries to dribble it around the taller teenager who grabs hold of Pierre’s hand, pulling him down to the floor with him. Sean feels his cheeks heat up as he watches Pierre laugh out as he lands on top of Stoffel. The two glance at each other for a moment before the shorter teenager leans down and presses his lips against Stoffel’s. Sean glances to Alex, only to find that the tips of his ears have turned red in embarrassment as he clears his throat.    
  
Stoffel immediately stiffens at the noise and rips his lips away from Pierre’s, his cheeks flooding with blush as he looks up at Alex.    
  
“Alex, you’re back early-” He says, his lips still wet with saliva.    
  
“Clearly, not back early enough,” Alex says, smirking. “You started the football game without us,”   
  
Pierre’s gaze fixes on Sean and his eyes narrow ever so slightly before his gaze crosses to Alex. “You didn’t say we were having company,”   
  
“You didn’t say you were eating Stoffel’s face for dinner,” Alex deadpans, smirk curling on his face as Pierre climbs off Stoffel and dusts off his shorts.    
  
“Touche, Lynn,” Pierre says, his gaze still on Alex. “Prepare to eat your words though when I kick your arse in this game, me and Stoff versus you and Sean,”   
  
“Hey, that’s not fair, you two are mat-” Alex’s eyes slide over to Sean as he shakes his head. “Fine, but Team Tall are going to kick your little asses,”   
  
Sean feels a smile brush against his lips. It’s the Sean he remembers, the one he was best friends with. He watches Alex peel away his t-shirt, revealing a pale but rather muscular chest, one that he certainly doesn’t remember as he and Alex get into position, Pierre kicking the ball towards them. Sean immediately takes it up, the ball weightless at his feet as he sidesteps Stoffel with ease. The ball sticks close to his ankle as he catches Pierre out of the corner of his eye but he anticipates the tackle, sees Pierre’s shoe coming and twists slightly, sliding the ball around the shorter teenager. He catches sight of the net and goes for it - it seems to be in slow motion as the ball leaves his feet and slams into the back of the net. He feels Alex catch him in a hug, hears Tonio’s excited barks from the sidelines as Pierre shoots him a look loaded with venom.    
  
Sean worries his lip as Alex’s warmth leaves him as he watches Stoffel collect the ball and pass it swiftly to Pierre. He sprints over to Pierre, ready to defend if necessary, but Pierre seems to dance out of the way of his tackles. There’s a smirk on the shorter teenager’s face as he finally manages to get past Sean, sprinting down the field. Alex launches himself towards Pierre but he seems to anticipate this move and fires a lightning shot into the net from thirty yards out. Tonio barks once more as Stoffel immediately throws himself on Pierre, their lips colliding together. 

  
“Hey, hey, stop that!” Alex says as he collects the ball.    
  
Pierre throws up his middle finger before the pair break apart and Alex knocks the ball to Sean who passes it back as Pierre begins running towards him. Alex continues to run down the field, his pale body gleaming with sweat as he charges towards Stoffel. Stoffel tries to rugby tackle him but to no avail, Alex powers through and knocks the ball back into the net. Sean feels angry blue eyes on him as Alex surges at him, wrapping his arms around Sean and pressing him into his sweaty, pale chest.    
  
Pierre starts kicking the ball, sprinting down the left side as Stoffel moves over to the opposite side, Alex following him. Sean approaches Pierre, trying to figure out where he can get in a clean tackle. Pierre smirks and side steps but Sean follows him, blocks his path before Pierre tries to shift the opposite way but Sean meets him. Pierre growls low under his breath as he tries to confuse Sean, tries to pull the ball one way and then the other but Sean manages to catch the ball with the tip of his foot and begins to sprint the opposite way. Pierre follows him, snapping at his heels as he sprints the length of the field, ignoring Alex’s shouts as he launches the ball at the net, watching it career into the net. However, as he turns to throw up his hands and celebration, someone slams into him. He falls onto the grass, the breath falling out of his lungs as he hears Stoffel and Alex’s shouts. Pain twists in his ankle, flares up within a second, seeping into his muscle and he shouts out, arching against the damp grass. He can hear Tonio’s snarl through the pain, hears the voices.    
  
Sean glances up to see Pierre standing above him, breathing heavily. His hands are curled into fists and he’s panting. He tries not to think of his father in that moment, closes his eyes and pretends that he’s safe.    
  
“Pierre, what the fuck-” Alex begins as he glances down at Sean, Stoffel arrives a moment later, his arm curving around Pierre’s arm which Sean notices calms him immediately. Alex falls to his knees, worried brown eyes locked on Sean.   
  
“Sean, you alright?” He asks as Tonio finally reaches them, immediately leaning over Sean’s face. Sean opens his eyes to find the green eyes he loves so much staring back at him as the wolf nuzzles up against his face, his tongue ghosting over Sean’s cheek.    
  
“I’m okay,” Sean says, wincing at Tonio’s tongue moving over his cheek. “I think I went over on my ankle,”   
  
Alex curses under his breath. “I should take a look,”   
  
“Please don’t,” Sean begins but Alex rolls up his trousers, eyes ghosting over his ankle, cool fingers probing the sensitive skin as Tonio lays down next to Sean, his soft fur tickling his skin as the wolf licks his hair. Alex’s hands are soft and cool against his skin but they don’t stop the cry of pain that pulls itself from his lips when Alex presses down on a certain area.    
  
“I think you’ve sprained it, Sean,” Alex says, eyes turning to Pierre and Stoffel for the briefest of moments before he stiffens, pushing up Sean’s trousers higher.    
  
“Sean?” He asks, his eyes glancing over the dark bruising circling Sean’s ankle. “What’s this?”   
  
“It’s nothing,” Sean says, not meeting Alex’s eyes as he feels the tears spring up in his eyes. “I did it at work, tripped over my own feet and well-”   
  
“These look like fingermarks,” Alex says, narrowing his eyes. “Sean-”   
  
“They’re not, you’re overthinking things again,” Sean snaps, feeling Tonio whine against him as he sits upright.   
  
“Sean, if someone is hurting you, we can help,” Alex says softly. “It’s okay-”   
  
“Look, I’m fine, honestly,” Sean says, avoiding everyone’s eyes. “I’m clumsy and it was an accident,” He says, pushing Tonio away slowly. The wolf whines out and tries to get next to Sean but Sean ignores him, trying to push Alex’s hand away. “I’m fine,”   
  
“You’re not fine,” Alex says slowly, his eyes fixed on Sean. “We can help,”   
  
“There’s nothing wrong, okay?” Sean says, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. “I just twisted it, honestly-”   
  
“Sean-” Alex begins and Tonio whimpers again, the wolf trying to push his nose up against his arm but Sean pushes him away.    
  
“I have to go-” He says, pulling himself to his feet, ignoring the stabbing pain in his ankle, the tears forming in the corners of his eyes. “I remembered I have a test to study for-” He says weakly as he begins to walk away from Alex, Pierre and Stoffel. However he feels something bat up against his legs, Tonio follows him, whining under his breath, his dark green eyes shining in the dim light.    
  
“Tonio,” Sean says weakly, trying to ignore the pain shooting through his ankle as he makes his way over to the woods. “I’m fine, just go,”   
  
Tonio stays with him however, staying close to his ankles. His green eyes are fixed on Sean, his head rubbing against Sean’s leg, a low whine falling from his lips as he follows the human.    
  
“No,” Sean says, glancing down at the wolf. “Just leave me alone,” He says, louder this time and Tonio’s ears slide back as he bows his head, dropping away from Sean. Sean walks away from Tonio as fast as he can, the pain still shooting through his ankle as he hears Tonio’s low whines. He can’t bring himself to glance behind, to look into the dark forest eyes as he continues to limp through the forest. He doesn’t see the green-eyed wolf looking behind him, eyes fixed on Alex who watches Sean fade away through the trees. He gives the wolf a imperceptible nod as Tonio begins following the human, careful to remain as quiet as possible.    
  
Sean feels the tears in the corners of his eyes as he continues to limp through the woods, the twigs cracking under his feet as he approaches the edge of the trees. He can see the windows of his house, the window to his parent’s house is shrouded in darkness and he lets out a small sigh. He might be able to sneak in without his dad waking up. Biting down on his lip as he places pressure on his ankle, he vaults over the garden fence with ease, pushing his hand into his pocket to retrieve his house key. He tries to be as quiet as possible when he turns the handle, slowly making his way into the house, sliding off his worn trainers.    
  
“Sean,” He stiffens at the sound of his father’s voice. “You’re late,”   
  
Sean drops the trainers to the floor as he glances up into his father’s eyes, they’re dark and emotionless, his breath heavy with the scent of alcohol. “I’m sorry, father, I just-” He doesn’t get to finish as he feels the explosion of pain across his cheek, feels the stabbing sensation of one of his father’s rings cuts deep into his skin and Sean feels the scream leave his lips.    
  
“Dad, please-” He begins, staggering backwards, holding onto his cheek. “Please,”   
  
But his father pays him no attention as he grabs hold of Sean’s hair, ignoring his son’s screams, emotionless eyes staring ahead blankly. “I should have killed you ages ago, you’re just another reminder!” He snarls, spittle flying from his lips. Sean has been frightened a few times, but never like this - he can feel his father’s breath on his cheek, his fingers wrenching at his hair.    
  
“Dad, please, I’m sorry I-”   
  
“You never fucking listen, do you Sean?” His father hisses as he draws back his fist and slams it into Sean’s abdomen over and over again. “You’re useless, you’re nothing, I should have told your mother never to have you-” He spits, holding Sean firm as his fist presses into Sean’s stomach again and again, the teenager screaming out at each blow.    
  
“Dad-” Sean sobs out as his father’s hand wrenches out of his hair and curves around his neck, shoving him up against the wall. “Dad, please-” Sean chokes out as he struggles to breathe, to take in gulps of air, his father’s fingers digging tight enough to bruise. “Dad-”   
  
“I wish it had been you who died that day, not her,” His father spits, eyes dark with anger. “It should have been you!”   
  
“I’m sorry, Dad- I-” Sean coughs, feeling the tears prick in the corners of his eyes as his father lands another punch into his abdomen, making him twist in pain. “I am sorry-”   
  
“You’re weak, you’re pathetic, you’re not worthy of being my son,” His father snarls with venom. “I should kill you,” Spittle lands on Sean’s cheek as his father’s thumb presses into his windpipe. He sobs out as he tries to take a deep breath, tries to take in air as he fixes his eyes on his father.    
  
“Don’t look at me, you have her eyes,” He snarls, his fingers pressing into Sean’s skin. Sean feels his vision go blurry as he tries to take a gulp of air, his lungs rattling as he tries to scramble out of his father’s hold.    
  
“Dad, please-” He says once more, feeling blackness press at the corners of his vision. He blinks once, trying to dispel the blurriness, his father’s eyes like coal pressing on him, the breath leaving his lungs. He’s about to lose consciousness, his hands stilling against his father’s as he catches a glimpse of green eyes over his father’s shoulder. He opens his mouth but no words come out as the darkness curves closer to him - he hears a familiar growl before he sees nothing but darkness. He comes to again, dizziness still clinging to his vision, to find himself on the floor. He’s curled up in a ball - pain shooting through him as he moves, only to hear another snarl and his father’s cry.    
  
His head immediately snaps upright to the source of the noise and he feels the dizziness wash over him again as he spots familiar chocolate brown fur, watches his father scream as the wolf dives onto his chest. Sean feels the numbness wash over his body as he tries to take in deep breathes, tries to steady himself.    
  
“T-Tonio, no-” He mutters, his voice weak as he watches the wolf snarl. Dizziness washes over him again as he hears a yelp. He closes his eyes, blackness swallows him up once more. He jerks awake at the sensation of a cold nose pressing against him. He furrows his brow, trying to move away, only to hear a small high pitched whine as the nose bumps against his cheek again. He slowly opens his eyes, wincing in pain to see the most beautiful pair of forest green eyes staring back at him. Tonio stands before him, eyes fixed on his, his tail between his legs and his ears pinned back, a smear of red blood on his snout.    
  
“Tonio,” Sean says weakly, his hand moving to catch Tonio’s fur, as though the wolf will disappear before his eyes. But Tonio doesn’t. He shifts closer, letting out another dull whine, his nose pressing against Sean’s cheek. “You’re here-” Sean mutters, the dizziness washing over him again, his hand that is fisted into the chocolate brown fur stiffens as a wave of pain tears through his battered body. Tonio whines again and shuffles closer.    
  
“I’m glad you’re here-” Sean begins but the words die in his throat as he feels the blackness pull him under again, his hand loosening on Tonio’s fur.    
  


* * *

  
  
Sean wakes up in an unfamiliar place, pain still seeping through his veins as he blinks away the sleep from his eyes. He’s lying on something soft and there’s someone behind him, curving around his back, their breath light against his ear. Furrowing his brow, he shifts around, only to feel the pain blossoming through his body, rippling over his abdomen, a shout of pain pressing from his lips. His eyes fall on a teenager curled around him, a teenager he knows he’s seen before - with messy brown hair and pale skin. Sean examines him carefully, glances down at the skinny wrist draping itself over his side as he shifts again. However, he catches himself again in the kidney, a yelp of pain pulls itself from his lips.    
  
The teenager shifts, his brow furrowing as he slowly opens his eyes, eyes that Sean knows well, the same eyes that Tonio possesses - the same dark forest green eyes of the wolf that Sean has grown to love are in front of him, but it’s not Tonio on the bed -    
  
“Sean, breathe,” The teenager says, his eyes widening as Sean realises that he’s heaving, fighting to take a breath, his lungs fighting to take air in.    
  
“Who are you?” Sean says, panic tugging on his chest. His chest surges at the sight of the white Jakarta hoodie the boy is wearing, huge on his thin frame.    
  
The boy fixes the dark green eyes on him. “I’m Tonio…”   



End file.
